First Passive House projects in Greece and Turkey now certified

On 11 February 2016, the Passive House Institute announced the certification of the first Passive House projects in Greece and Turkey. A complex of terraced houses in Greece and an environmental education centre in Turkey are the first buildings to fulfill the criteria of the Passive House Standard in these two Mediterranean countries.

The first Passive House project in Greece is located at the edge of the coastal port city of Volos. The three terraced houses built by the local engineering firm X-G lab+development have a total area of 477 square metres. As calculated with the design tool PHPP, the heating demand is 12 kWh/(m²a) and the cooling demand is 6 kWh/(m²a). Quality assurance was performed by the Hellenic Passive House Institute (E.I.Π.Α.Κ), the national affiliate of the International Passive House Association (iPHA).

As for the Human Resources Centre in the Turkish city of Gaziantep, light-coloured walls and green roofs offer protection against too much sun. Depending on the time of year, the supply air of the ventilation system is preheated or pre-cooled with the aid of a ground heat exchanger. The energy demand of the building is largely covered by a photovoltaic system in the garden. The Passive House building has a total area of just under 310 square metres and includes a small auditorium as well as other rooms for educational purposes. Development of the building took place in cooperation between local architects and partners in Germany.

The specific challenges for energy efficient construction in regions with a warm climate will be presented based on these and other projects at the International Passive House Conference 2016 which will take place in Darmstadt, Germany on 22-23 April 2016.

For further information, please visit the relevant Passive House Institute press release.

To read about the Greek project in the Greek language, please visit the relevant BUILD UP post.